Jess Butcher is the co-founder and director of leading technology business Blippar. Picture: Gary Walker

Gary Walker

In a week where we are celebrating 100 years since some women were given the vote, we caught up with a leading female entrepreneur from Great Wymondley, Jess Butcher, to discuss the opportunities women now have thanks to first-wave feminists.

Successful entrepreneur Jess Butcher says being in business is the most rewarding and thrilling career. Picture:

Earlier this year Jess – who co-founded technology business, Blippar – was made an MBE for services to digital technology and entrepreneurship after a career spent building a number of successful businesses from scratch.

She was also named as one of the ‘Inspiring 50’- a list of the most inspiring women in European tech in 2016, and ‘Top 10 Most Powerful Women Entrepreneurs’ in 2012.

She told the Comet: “I’m obviously firmly a believer that entrepreneurship is one of the most rewarding careers anyone can go into. Building something from scratch is really special and a thrill.

“It’s not for everybody, it causes a great deal of stress – for those who are comfortable with that, it’s one of the most special careers changes you can make and I would highly recommend to anyone.”

While Jess believes business to be a highly rewarding field to be prominent in, there are also still challenges facing women in the work place.

“The most obvious challenge is for women who want to start building families,” Jess continued.

“It’s very very hard to do both well, and some women do not have the luxury of having a partner who is an a position where they can support them in their career.

“You are likely to be away from your home and your family a great deal more and it’s often quite hard to find other women in the same boat.

“I have three small children so I am extremely aware of these challenges. I have had to make decisions about day to day involvement, which has enabled me to have a better work - life balance.”

“I went back to work three months after the birth of my first, and I did feel a bit of guilt in doing that.

“This is something that nobody talks about. This apparent secret that women don’t get to the top, but it’s a choice that many women make, Why do men want to be at the top? It’s an incredibly stressful lifestyle.”